Reuters | October 21, 1999
WASHINGTON - David Aaron, the U.S. Commerce Department's under secretary for international trade, was cited as saying that a European Union plan to establish a precise threshold for when to label food containing genetically modified material is a welcome development, but that the EU plan could be used to block U.S. food products "if it's not accompanied by strict scientific test procedures to guard against false positives. ... We welcome the fact that they're establishing a threshold because we've been pushing it for more than a year. Without it, the threshold was effectively zero and that was ridiculous." But in setting the standard at just 1 percent, the EU is "pushing the science to the ragged edge" and raised the chances for false readings that could bar imports from the United States.
Michael Hanson, chief researcher for Consumers Union, was cited as saying that labels should be required on foods found to contain 0.1 percent of a genetically modified ingredient, adding, "The threshold for labeling genetically modified ingredients should be near the level of detection. Consumers have a right to know, and to choose what they wish to buy."
Tim Galvin, administrator of the U.S. Agriculture Department's Foreign Agricultural Service, said the United States remains sceptical of mandatory labels and that a number of difficult technical regulatory issues raise questions about whether mandatory labeling plans "are practical to implement."
